Stories

Meet the people who work at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney and keep up with the latest news and stories. Delve into the background behind the news and discover more about the subjects that matter most to us.

Stories

Meet the people who work at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney and keep up with the latest news and stories. Delve into the background behind the news and discover more about the subjects that matter most to us.

Dr Dale Dixon

Profile

Dr Dale Dixon has developed a passionate enthusiasm for tropical taxonomy and horticulture. This has taken him all around Australia to eventually find his home here as the Curator-Manager of the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney and Domain. His fascination with plants has been evident for as long as he can remember and growing up in far North Queensland gave him a keen interest and knowledge of tropical plants. While plants were always a vital part of his own life, Dale didn’t pursue a career in botany until later in life.

Upon commencing his academic study into plants, Dale cultivated a focus on plant taxonomy; that is how to name, describe and identify plants. In 2001 Dale earned a PhD from James Cook University, has published more than 30 papers and received several awards. Dale spent nearly a decade in the Northern Territory working with some of Australia’s most fascinating ecosystems before moving east with his partner, where we were lucky enough to bring him on board. Dale’s passion for tropical taxonomy can be observed by his wonderfully diverse balcony garden, proving that we can all have a taste of the tropics, even in the inner city.